Lutron Dimming Basics / Tutorial

Dec. 8, 2011 - PRLog -- Types of Dimmers

Each type of lighting source (load types) has individual characteristics, which require special types of dimmers. It is important to use a dimmer that is designed, tested, and UL listed for your specific lighting source/load type:

Incandescent/Halogen:
Line-voltage tungsten filament lamps, including line-voltage (120 V) halogen lamps

Magnetic Low-voltage (MLV):
Magnetic (core and coil, toroidal) transformer-supplied low-voltage lighting (6, 12, or 24 V)

Electronic Low-voltage (ELV):
Electronic (solid-state) transformer-supplied low-voltage lighting

Neon/Cold Cathode (Magnetic Ballast):
Magnetic (core and coil, toroidal) transformer-supplied

Fluorescent: Electronic Fluorescent Dimming Ballast
Special dimmers are designed and UL listed to send power and control signals to each type of electronic fluorescent dimming ballast.

Light Emitting Diode (LED): Electronic LED Driver
Special dimmers are designed to send power and control signals to each type of electronic LED driver.

Heat Dissipation

During normal operation, dimmers get warm to the touch. Wallbox dimmer efficiency is typically around 99%. The other 1% is dissipated in the dimmer as heat. So, a 600 W load on a 600 W dimmer would produce around 6 watts of heat. This is approximately the heat generated from a small nightlight. Operating on its rated load, Lutron dimmers will stay below the UL limits of 140º F (60º C).

Ganging & Derating

To help the dimmer dissipate the internal heat normal to operation, a typical dimmer is wider than a switch. Dimmers can be ganged together such that the space is the same as switches. A portion of the fins (heat sink) must be removed. The fins are grooved to make the removal of fins easy with a pair of pliers. The removal of fins reduces the wattage capacity (load) the dimmer can control.

To purchase Lutron Dimmer, click http://www.electricsuppliesonline.com/lutron.html

To purchase Lutron Wiring Devices (Switch, Receptacle, GFCI), click http://www.electricsuppliesonline.com/lutron-wiring-devic...

To purchase Lutron Cover plates, click http://www.electricsuppliesonline.com/wallplates.html